The laboratory alarms had finally gone silent. However, the room was still sealed and bathing in crimson light.

With great effort, Marcus crawled to the closest wall and laid his back against it. His head felt heavy. With all the ventilation systems blocked, the room was isolated from the outside. The gas couldn’t get out. It wouldn’t be long until the first symptoms of poisoning appeared.

Elizabeth walked in circles. She wasn’t stupid. She had probably reached the same conclusion as he did. Her pistol was no longer in her hands, since killing him would serve no purpose anymore.

She sighed, approached an office chair, and sat down.

“You look quite calm for someone who’s about to die…” said Marcus.

“Look who’s talking.”

“I admit it wasn’t difficult to accept. I’ve done bad things. Things I shouldn’t have allowed… I think I deserve to end like this.”

“…Evelyn, I suppose?” Marcus nodded. “What were you even thinking? Your department tried everything they could on her, didn’t they? Even after the Sting transformed her irreversibly. To turn your own daughter into a guinea pig… And I’m the monster here? Don’t make me laugh, I don’t feel like it.”

“I was desperate. Blind. I couldn’t let her go. You wouldn’t understand, Elizabeth… After all, she wasn’t your daughter.”

“I understand it, but I don’t share the same opinion.” she made a long pause. “This is precisely why I never bothered with emotional relationships. What for? They might be able to make you happy, but they can also corrupt you to the core. I’ll pass. Let me tell you something: in comparison, I had it quite easy. A stable, balanced life, more money than I felt like spending, a job that allowed me to do something in humanity’s benefit… and zero familiar or emotional drama. What else could I ask for?”

“In humanity’s benefit…? The cyanide must be affecting your brain already…”

“We just see things from a different perspective, Marcus. You’re only taking the negatives into consideration. Controlling the Sting could change everything, and not necessarily for the worse. We could overcome those things forever. No need to eradicate them; we could coexist. With all the associated implications.”

“And you trust ZEUS to take such responsibility? You’re out of your mind. Grant power to any single group or individual, and we’ll self-destruct as a species. The stingers will be the least of our problems.”

“I never said I trusted ZEUS. However, the path they’ve taken is headed in the right direction, even if the end goal differs.”

‘Everyone is the hero of their own story, huh…?’

Elizabeth slid her hand into her coat and took out a mobile phone. Her fingers tapped on the screen, then stopped after a while. She brought the device to her mouth and began talking.

“To whoever is listening: we’re carrying out an evacuation at Kurtis Tower, downtown, this evening. We have a helicopter, with vacant seats. If you’re looking for help, this might be your last chance.”

“What are you doing…!?”

“And… done.” she tapped some more on the phone, then left it on the table. “Transmitting on loop, until this thing runs out of juice. Any radio in the city should be able to receive the message.”

‘The more people show up, the more complicated the evacuation will be… and the easier it’ll be for ZEUS’ mercenaries to carry out an infiltration. Seriously? You didn’t have enough yet?’

“Why are you looking at me like that? What did you expect, a last-minute redemption? I’ll be consistent in my ideals. You placed a bet on your partners. I’ll place a bet on mine. As simple as that.”

Marcus clenched his teeth and pressed hard on the bullet wound on his left side, with jolts of pain coursing through his body. His head was spinning. He didn’t have much time left.

“I should’ve put an end to this when I had the chance…”

“Honestly, I wonder why you didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, I understand why you guys did nothing until the very last moment. You needed to buy time. But, now? Having both a weapon and the element of surprise? Are you stupid?”

“I couldn’t do it… I guess I did feel something for you at some point, Elizabeth. Something real, even if it ended up being completely one-sided. And Evelyn… she also liked you, despite your rejection. Yes, maybe I am stupid indeed.”

Elizabeth sighed and got up from her seat. After opening a cupboard, she rummaged around numerous boxes and containers and pulled out a whiskey bottle, already started. No matter how diligent she was, she clearly never abandoned her bad habits. Marcus didn’t bother asking how had she managed to sneak it past the lab’s security.

She approached him and sat on the floor by his side. After taking a gulp directly from the bottle, she offered it to him. Marcus accepted it. The liquid burned down his throat, inducing a sudden coughing fit.

“Too strong for you?”

“A bit, yeah…”

Elizabeth let out a snicker. Marcus couldn’t help but notice her hands, something in them caught his attention. They were trembling.

“You know what…? It’s ironic for me to say this, but I like your honesty. In the end, I suppose I do find something attractive in you…”

“Save the sarcasm… I don’t think it’s necessary…”

“Sarcasm, huh…? Come on, pass the bottle…”

Marcus handed it to her. His own limbs had begun shaking as well. He felt nauseous, and his lungs slowly started gasping for air.

The alcohol continued exchanging hands, over and over, until those hands were no longer capable of holding the bottle.

******

“Colonel! Has that transmission been authorized!?” exclaimed one of the soldiers accompanying Rowan.

“No, it hasn’t.”

“Sir, that voice… It’s Dr. Elizabeth, right!?” asked Isaac. “She was the spy!?”

“Looks like it, captain. And it looks like she’ll be an obstacle up until the very end. The worst might be yet to come! Focus, gentlemen! I want to see everyone back home in one piece!”

“Yes, sir!!”

The prized briefcase vibrated on Rowan’s lap with every pothole or curve the truck took.

‘Marcus…’

Something had gone awry in the doctor’s plan. Otherwise, that transmission would’ve never seen the light of day. However, all the crucial pieces had safely abandoned the research center and were on their way to the evacuation point. The spy’s identity had been revealed. ZEUS had lost precious time.

The plan was working, for now.

‘No, we can’t let our guard down. Not until we’re up in the air. Not with unpredictable factors at play.’

“Hand me the radio, soldier.”

“Here, sir.” replied the man, giving him the device.

“This is Colonel Rowan. HQ, do you copy? Over.”

“This is HQ. We hear you, colonel.”

“We’re headed for the evacuation point, but it looks like ZEUS still has assets in the area. We should expect enemy resistance during the operation. How’re the transports?”

“Understood, colonel. The transport squadron is already on its way, they’ll reach the target position in approximately four hours. We’ve also sent combat units to provide you air support, as agreed.”

“Got it.”

Four hours. That was the time they had. All they needed to do was reach the helipad of Kurtis Tower and wait. Conceptually, it wasn’t a difficult task. They had the situation under control, right?

Some decades back, he’d have convinced himself of such a thing.

******

The smell of fresh blood permeated the entire room around him and inundated his nostrils, causing his brain to shudder. The experience was liberating, aphrodisiac.

“You fucking wretches… You had no other hole to hide in? Really? Have you learned nothing in all this time? Shit, there were better places, I’m telling you… You should have expected the puppy you kicked out from home to eventually find his way back…”

Jacobs walked erratically around the room while monologuing. The cries of a man resonated against the walls, mixing intermittently with his own voice. Music to his ears.

“Such wild months they must have been, huh? Squirming around like rats just like everyone else… Although you lot got high as kites on coke while doing it.”

As he walked, he tripped on a body lying on the floor.

‘Ricky, old bastard… I should have stabbed you more, while you could still scream…’

Scornfully, he spat over the corpse that once was his boss, before facing the man whimpering nonstop in the middle of the room, tied to a wooden chair.

Before approaching him, he turned his head around and looked at the entrance door. The sorrowful cries of the shamblers could be heard in the distance.

“I see you liked the spectacle so far.” he murmured, as if they could hear him. “Don’t worry, I have more. But I won’t be riddling this one with bullets… No, I’ll make this one sing instead.”

“P-Please… M-Mercy… Please…” begged the man.

Jacobs stared at him, frowned, and crouched down in front of him.

“Mercy? Are you kidding me, asshole? Do you have any idea how much you guys gross me out? I spend god knows how many years dealing with drugs for you, you kick me in the balls by putting me behind bars, and now you expect me to have mercy?” Jacobs tapped the side of his own head with his index finger. “This one doesn’t forget nor forgive, man. There are some loose ends you just can’t leave untied.”

He slipped his hand under his jacket and pulled out some rusty pruning shears.

“Me, for example.”

The shears closed over the flesh with a dull, wet sound; and the finger fell by Jacobs’ feet, along with a splatter of blood.

“Aaaaaaaaargh!!!”

“Screaming won’t make it less painful. I’d save the screams for later if I were you. You’re still packing another nineteen fingers.”

“P-Please, no…!! Aaaagh…!!! I’ll do anything…!!”

Jacobs wished he could’ve enjoyed the moment a bit more. The man’s pleas awakened something addictive within him, a feeling of control, of being able to do whatever the hell he wanted with nobody to stop him.

Unfortunately, for the shears, the pleas fell on deaf ears.

…

After slipping away from the building, Jacobs headed for his next target. He knew the gang stored relevant supplies in a warehouse in the vicinity. Since those guys had managed to stay alive the entire time, the warehouse was also likely to still be up and running. If that was the case, they would no longer need its contents.

It had been surprisingly easy. If he hadn’t done it before, that was because the old world would’ve never allowed it. But times had changed. There was no longer an organized system keeping people under control, there were no longer any laws stating what could and couldn’t be done, there was no longer a barrier separating moral from immoral.

That oppressive past had left a scar on his mind, the shadow of a hierarchical parasite keeping him at bay like a shackle. But now he felt free, freer than ever.

However, that freedom could easily be ephemeral.

The backdoor of the warehouse was locked. He kicked it several times, until the lock gave in, revealing a dark interior. As soon as he inspected the area with the beam of the flashlight, his eyes lightened up with enthusiasm.

‘Yes… This’ll do.’

There were still parasites to get rid of. And if he let them roam freely, they’d reproduce. They’d thrive. They’d return order to a world better off without it.

‘An evacuation at Kurtis Tower… It must be the military. Who’s it gonna be otherwise? Only the military would have the necessary resources to set up an aerial evacuation in this place. And, if they’re evacuating, that can only mean two things: either they are leaving with their tail between their legs, or they got what they wanted and they’re triumphantly returning home… What do I do? Stay put and watch? Go with them and end up behind bars again? Fuck all that. I’m thinking of a much more entertaining option.’

******

“[ZEUS] here. Over.”

“Hades here. We hear you, [ZEUS].”

“Nyx has failed. The transmission coming from the research center is proof of that. The samples must now be on their way to the evacuation point, and the enemy will be wary of future operations. Start the cleanup protocol.”

“Cleanup, sir…? We might still have time to attempt an infiltration at Kurtis Tower.”

“That task belongs to Prometheus.”

“Then, that means…?”

“You already have your instructions.”

“Understood, sir.”

The radio went silent, and HA-01 squirmed a bit on his seat. The cleanup order wasn’t something they could take lightly. He would’ve preferred to take a different approach, but he wasn’t going to bite the arm that fed them.

“Get ready to jump into action, Hades.”

“Yes, sir.” replied two voices behind him.

He operated a series of switches and controls, and the vehicle’s engine turned on, with a noisy roar that increased in volume until becoming deafening.

“Let’s go.”